A Judge Sued His Dry Cleaner for $54 Million Over a Pair of Pants

In 2005, Roy L. Pearson Jr. dropped off a pair of pants at Custom Cleaners in Washington, D.C. The shop was run by Jin, Soo, and Ki Chung, a Korean-American family who had operated the business for years.

The pants went missing.

What happened next became one of the most absurd legal cases in American history.

Pearson, who served as an administrative law judge for the D.C. Office of Administrative Hearings, initially demanded $30,000 in compensation. When the Chungs refused to settle on his terms, he escalated. His demands climbed to $67 million before he reduced them to $54 million by the time the case went to trial in 2007.

His legal theory was breathtaking in its audacity. He argued that the shop's "Satisfaction Guaranteed" sign constituted a legally binding, unlimited warranty. Since he was not satisfied, the sign had been violated - and the damages were therefore effectively unlimited.

On the witness stand, Pearson broke down in tears. ABC News reported he "rushed from the courtroom, tears streaming down his face." The judge called a recess.

He lost. Judge Judith Bartnoff ruled in favor of the Chung family.

But the damage was done. The Chungs had spent over $100,000 in legal fees defending against the case. They were forced to close two of their three dry cleaning locations. Their attorney called it the "American nightmare."

For Pearson, the consequences kept coming. When his two-year term as an administrative law judge came up for renewal in October 2007, the commission voted not to reappoint him, citing a lack of "judicial temperament."

He filed a wrongful termination lawsuit. He lost that too.

In June 2020 - thirteen years after the original case - the D.C. Court of Appeals suspended Pearson from practicing law for 90 days.

A pair of pants cost a judge his career, his reputation, and his law license. It cost the Chung family their livelihood.